


Elegies For Homework

by Koopacake



Category: Bandom, Cobra Starship, Fall Out Boy, I Brought You My Bullets You Brought Me Your Love - My Chemical Romance (Album), My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Murder Mystery, Supernatural Elements, whodunit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:54:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23974090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Koopacake/pseuds/Koopacake
Summary: In which Frank Iero is unexpectedly thrown into a murder mystery, as he and his friends try to uncover the seedy supernatural underbelly of New Jersey to answer the question "Who killed Gerard Way?"
Relationships: Frank Iero & Gerard Way, Mikey Way & Pete Wentz
Comments: 8
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to 'useless_nerdy_writer' (on AO3 and Tumblr) for being my fic beta! The fact that this fic is no longer a grammatical mess proves that you're far from useless <3
> 
> Also an fyi: None of what the characters in this fic do reflects on my feelings towards their real life counterparts!

Frank looked around the cemetery for a place to sit, smoke some weed and read comics. He did this almost every day; it was relaxing and he never felt out of place amongst the dead. Plus, creepy things were sort of his aesthetic.

He walked past all the familiar names that were engraved in the tombstones, they were a bit like his friends which was pretty cool, despite how lonely and desperate it sounds (not that he needed to be desperate, he had other friends who weren't buried six feet underground).

Just as he was about to take a seat by good 'ol Deborah Harley, 1916-1998, a name that was even more familiar than the rest caught his eye. It wasn't there the last time Frank was in the cemetery—a new addition to the crew. He walked up to that headstone and sat on the dry grass next to it as he read the inscription. Gerard Way, 1984-2002. "Looks like I'm gonna spend some time with you, Way."

Gerard Way. Frank never really knew Gerard, honestly. They had only spoken about once throughout his whole life, but even just from that small interaction he could tell that Gerard was a pretty nice guy. Total contrast to his brother Mikey Way, though Frank didn't really know him either. It was just a week ago that Frank saw Gerard in the hallways at school, he would've never thought that to be the last time he saw Gerard period. The guy probably didn't even deserve to be murdered. 

Whatever, Frank wasn't gonna spend time lamenting the death of someone he didn't even know. He took off his bag and got comfortable by the tombstone, taking out a lighter, a joint (already rolled for his convenience) and some comic books.

As he took a hit, he began flicking through the pages with his free hand, with the comic positioned neatly in between his crossed legs.

Smoking and reading, Frank felt at peace in the cemetery. He felt his inhibitions disappear and indulged in the dead silence and utter isolation of the graveyard. 

"Oh man, is that the new issue of Ultimate X-Men? Damn, I've been waiting to read that!"

Frank felt his heart jump out of his chest at the sound of a voice right next to his ear.

He peered over his shoulder and the sight caused him to screech in pure terror, scramble away from the headstone, and choke on his joint. 

He hacked and coughed, his heart pounding against his ribcage.

"Oh fuck, are you alright?"

With a hard cough he sent the saliva-coated joint flying from his throat to across the ground. Frank coughed a few more times for extra measure before finally turning around to see if what he saw was actually there. And, yup. Yes it was.

Just a few feet away, floating above Frank, translucent and tinted blue was the very boy who was supposed to be buried in a box below ground. Gerard Way. 

Frank let out a shaky breath. "What the fuck was in that weed?"

"I didn't mean to scare you! Just got excited. Plus, when I felt you by my tombstone I kinda expected you to be someone else," the boy said bashfully. Frank, still not able to fully grasp the situation, gawked at the figure in front of him. Gerard was indeed still there, still floating, and Frank was certain what he was seeing had nothing to do with the weed he inhaled.

He leaned in closer, trembling in fear, “G—Gerard?”

Gerard looked at him with a timid smile (He couldn’t believe Gerard had the NERVE to be timid. Frank wasn’t the dead, floating guy—why on earth was he scared?!) and shrugged, “Yeah, that’s me…”

“But…” Frank took a second, collecting his thoughts, then resumed, “you were dead.”

“Still am,” Gerard responded matter-of-factly, as if any of this was normal at all.

“But I can see- … Holy shit. Did my constant exposure to cemeteries awaken some ghost-vision or something?!”

Gerard snickered causing Frank to shoot him an offended glare. He gave Frank a somewhat apologetic look in return, “Um, sorry but you don’t have powers. It's actually the ghost that decides who can and can't see them.”

“Oh,” Frank said in disappointment.

“Would’ve been cool if you did though.”

“Heh, yeah,” Frank forged a laugh, trying to hide how uneasy he felt.

Frank and Gerard were now past the jumpy introductions and have now reached some sort of awkward equilibrium. At least Frank wasn’t scared out of his mind anymore.

After about a minute of silence, Gerard spoke out. "I do remember you,” Gerard began. “From school, you’re in Mikey’s class, right?”

“Oh, uh yeah, I’m Frank. Frank Iero.” Frank held out his hand to shake Gerard’s but quickly retrieved it, wondering if Gerard’s hand would just phase right through his, and instead settled for a short wave. 

“Cool! Uh, I’m Gerard Way, though, you already knew that, huh?”

“Yup, pretty sure everyone in town knows your name by now.”

"Really?" Gerard seemed surprised, as if he didn't think his untimely death was that important—in the grand-scheme of things, it probably wasn't, but it certainly shook up the small town they lived in. "Was it like, on the news and stuff?"

"Yeah it was! There were police everywhere- there's an ongoing investigation to find your killers! And there was an assembly about it too. Now the school's raising money to help keep the streets clean from, like, gang crime and shit."

Gerard laughed. "Keep the streets clean? In New Jersey? Good fucking luck."

"Ha, tell me about it!"

They both laughed for a little while and Frank felt the heavy tension steadily disperse. Gerard was a pretty nice guy. Damn. Shame Frank never talked to Gerard more when he was alive, they probably would've really hit it off.

Gerard's face suddenly fell, though, and he began to shift uncomfortably from where he was hovering. "Uh, so, speaking of school, have you, like, spoken to my brother recently?"

Oh geez.

Frank and Mikey weren't close at all. They weren't even friends. Frank hung out with a bunch of hard-core guys in the year above him—they were even thinking of forming a band together—whereas Frank didn't think Mikey even had friends apart from that weird emo kid in their class, Pete Wentz.

And even worse, Mikey hadn't even been in school since the funeral. He must've taken a leave of absences for his emotional recovery. 

But Gerard looked desperate for an answer. Frank was an only child so he couldn't imagine how either Mikey or Gerard must be feeling. Frank ultimately decided to dodge the question with a question of his own, "Have you not talked to Mikey yourself?"

Gerard shook his head guilty, "I wasn't able to surface until a few days after my funeral, I guess. In fact, this is the only time I have surfaced!" He changed his position to sit cross-legged, still slightly floating above ground, "I sort of expected Mikey to have visited, then I would appear for him, but…"he trailed off, looking hopelessly into the distance. 

God, Frank felt bad for something that honestly had nothing to do with him. He sighed, "Maybe, you should go to him, then."

Gerard shook his head profusely. "Are you crazy?! That'd freak him out so hard! He'd think he was insane and send himself off to a psych ward!"

"Jesus, okay, um. How about…" Frank's mind sorted through a number of different plans that could make Gerard happy, one being 'I'll kill Mikey so you two can be together forever!' But he figured that wouldn't bode well for either brother. Frank eventually settled for a more appropriate solution. "How about I take you to him?"

Gerard tilted his head in confusion. "How would that help?"

"Well I could, like, ease him into it. And me being there would show that he's not crazy, since I can see you too!"

Gerard looked unconvinced, but then that unconvinced face shifted to one of consideration, then realisation, and finally landed on glee.

"Yes. Yes, Frank, that's a good idea!" He flew up close to Frank excitedly. "Could you do it now? I can tell you where I live!"

Frank looked down at the comics he dashed on the ground and the choked-on joint before collecting his comic books and placing them in his bag. "Guess I didn't have any plans. I'll go but won't people react to seeing you all… not dead?"

"It's fine, I'll just make myself visible to you—then no one else can see me!"

Frank slung his rucsac over his shoulder. "That's so weird, how do you even control that?"

Gerard shrugged. "Dunno, just can. It's a ghost thing. You'll understand when you're older, hopefully."

Frank snickered before smiling back at his new ghost friend. "Lead the way, Way."


	2. Chapter 2

Frank was a pretty gutsy guy. When it came to wacky antics, Frank was always the first to get involved, regardless of consequences. Not because he was stupid or reckless—okay, maybe he was a little bit—but mainly because he had a 'live fast, die young' attitude. (Though, that probably wasn't an appropriate phrase to use right now.) Frank did feel like he may have overstepped by offering to reunite a ghost and his non-ghost brother.

Gerard was practically soaring through the air, excited to be back together with Mikey at long last. 

Everybody knew how close the Way brothers were, even if they didn't know either of them personally. Their separation must have been absolutely agonising.

"We're almost there, come on!" Gerard called, speeding up. Frank really didn't feel like running, he picked up his pace to a jog. 

They arrived in a pretty mundane neighbourhood. Pretty far from Frank's place, not a place he's ever bothered to go to before. Gerard excitedly pointed out his former home. "There, that's the place!"

"Hold on there, Casper," Frank said quickly, before Gerard could get carried away. "Let's think about this a little, okay? I need to think of what to say, your parents aren't just gonna let me waltz in with the ol 'I gotta reunite your dead son with your other one' story." 

Gerard stopped to ponder, he didn't think that far ahead either. The two stood around for a while (though from an outsider's perspective, Frank was just standing in the middle of the street alone) until Gerard's face lit up. "You can just say you're his friend! And that you want to check up on him!"

"yeah, that'll work!" Frank smiled, nodding his head. He then spoke in a more serious tone. "Also, don't just go and reveal yourself the second you walk in, you'll give the guy a heart attack. We gotta ease into it. I'll do the talking, then when I give you the signal, you show yourself"

"What's the signal?"

"I dunno, but I'll make it super obvious."

Gerard just shrugged before elegantly vanishing into thin air.

After that quick intervention, Frank walked up to the door. Frank hesitated a little before knocking. No one came to the door for a little while, and Frank wondered if they even heard him but just as he was about to knock again, the door opened to reveal a miserable blonde lady—Gerard's mom, Frank presumed.

"Um, hello Mrs Way. I'm Frank, Mikey's friend… from class. Uh, is he here? I wanted to check up on him, see if he's okay…"

Her expression shifted to a warm smile as she moved aside to let Frank through. "Thank you, Mikey's been in a really bad headspace lately. He's so lucky to have friends like you and Pete. He's just upstairs."

Frank nodded his head as if to say 'thanks,' before jogging up the stairs.

All the doors upstairs were open apart from one. Frank assumed that was Mikey's room. He quietly knocked on the door, waiting for an answer.

"Come in," a hushed voice from the other side of the door spoke out. Taking the instruction, Frank did just that.

Inside, sat on the edge of a single bed, was a meek boy with shaggy brown hair, glasses and holding a small handheld console.

The boy looked up, seeming surprised when his eyes landed on Frank, "Frank? I thought you were…sorry, what—what are you doing here?"

"Um, hi Mikey! How...have you been?" Frank asked sweetly but Mikey wasn't having any of it.

"What do you want?" he asked, more sternly this time.

Frank shifted uncomfortably from the doorway. Best to get this over with. Frank closed the door as he walked farther into the room, "okay, um. I know, we haven't exactly been _close_ , but right now I'm gonna need you to absolutely trust me, alright?"

Mikey just continued staring. "Why… would I agree to that?"

"Because you are really going to like what I show you." Frank said with a grin.

It was silent. Frank was beaming while Mikey kept staring. It was a known fact in their class that Mikey had the best poker face—no one could get a good read on him.

it was starting to make him feel really uncomfortable so he just kept talking, "I'm also gonna need you to not freak out, don't want your mom rushing in here—but I promise you've got nothing to worry about. In fact, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised!"

Silence.

Well, now's a better time than any. "Mikey Way, I'd like you to say hello to someone _VERY SPECIAL!"_ Frank all but yelled as he spread his arms out with frantic jazz hands.

Mikey's poker face broke into one of pure bemusement. 

Frank stood there, waving his arms like an idiot. Where the hell was Gerard? Was that not a clear enough signal? "Heh… ahem. I said, I'd like you to meet someone _VERY SPECIAL_!" he repeated, somewhat less enthusiastically. God, he probably looked like such a dickhead right now. 

He lowered his arms slightly, reeling from embarrassment. Mikey was starting to look less confused, and more pissed off. "Are you done?"

"Sorry I—someone was supposed to come… after that. I was trying to… signal."

"Oh shit, was that the signal?" Gerard's voice echoed by Frank's ear.

"Yeah, it was! And you missed it, and now it's really awkward!" Frank shouted back at the disembodied voice, startling Mikey.

"Who are you talking to, man?" he asked, now clearly concerned.

Frank shook his head, face in palm, he was so over this. "Gerard just come out, man"

Mikey's eyes widened, "Did you say—"

He cut himself off as his bedroom began to fill up with some indistinguishable blue smoke. After about 30 seconds of build-up, a boy elegantly emerged from the smoke. Semi-transparent, blueish and slightly disheveled, Gerard stood sheepishly in the centre of the room as the smoke cleared up.

"Uh, hey Mikey," he said with a small wave.

Mikey was silent, eyes wide and mouth agape.

"Remember what I said, don't freak out," Frank added quickly.

Mikey's silence suddenly broke with a loud sob that he quickly covered up with his hands. Oh wow, he's crying. Frank didn't think he was even able to do that, physically. 

Gerard swooped in at the speed of light and wrapped Mikey in a hug. Frank could see Mikey's form through Gerards body—he looked so small, so vulnerable as he broke down in Gerards arms. Frank felt like he absolutely shouldn't be there. Not knowing what to do, he shuffled over to Mikey's bookshelf, flicking through all his comics and woah—there were a lot of comics. That should keep him busy while the two brothers hugged it out.

Though he wasn't facing them, Frank _was_ still in the same room, so he couldn't help but eavesdrop on their conversation. 

"I missed you so much. God, I missed you. We—we had plans. How could you just… go?"

"I'm sorry, I missed you too. I thought you would've come visit my grave. Why didn't you visit?"

" …It would've hurt too much. Physically seeing your grave, that's just proof that you're…plus, how could I have known you'd come back as a ghost."

"Heh, that's fair. Guess we're just lucky Frank was around."

"Oh Yeah?"

Frank felt himself smile involuntarily, as he looked away from the Daredevil comic in his hand to peer over at the two boys.

"Yeah," Gerard continued. "I felt someone's presence by my grave today. Thought it was you but he offered to take me to you anyway."

"It was no big deal man," Frank said, trying to sound modest, though honestly, this was probably the biggest deal he'd ever been involved in. "Besides I'm like, sorta high so I'm basically down for anything right now."

The three laughed. Mikey looked over at Frank with the most genuine goddamn smile anyone has ever directed at him. "Thank you, Frank. Really. God, I owe you everything."

Frank shrugged, too flustered to really know what to say.

Mikey then turned back to Gerard, back to his signature stony expression. "Gee, I have to know. Who did this to you?"

The temperature in the room suddenly dropped drastically—must be Gerard's doing because Frank could've sworn the heaters in this room were on—and a thick tension filled the room. Frank felt deeply unsettled and he didn't even know why. He put Mikey's comic book back on the shelf and turned to the direction of the brothers.

Gerard looked antsy yet Mikey stood firm. "Gerard," he said, like a teacher telling a student off. "Tell me."

Gerard rubbed the back of his neck. "It's gonna sound really… strange."

"Dude, I'm literally talking to your ghost right now, we are well past strange."

Gerard said nothing for a minute before sighing in defeat under Mikey's icy stare. "Fine. It was… it was vampires."

Frank's eyeballs nearly popped out of his head, and Mikey wasn't any less shocked. 

"Yeah, a bunch of them. They attacked me at night. Couldn't fight them off…" Gerard looked so genuinely distressed as he spoke.

"Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait," Frank cut in. "But don't you turn INTO a vampire when you're bitten?"

Gerard nodded. "Yeah, but I wasn't bitten. I was fucking mauled!" He removed the black jacket he was wearing (which just floated in the air) and lifted up his shirt. Underneath revealed a devastating gash across his stomach and back. The news reported the crime as a knife attack but those… did not look like stab wounds. "There are more on my arms. Those guys were aiming for everywhere _but_ my neck, apparently," he said as he let go of his shirt and put his jacket back on.

Mikey looked like he was on the verge of crying again.

Frank wasn't sensitive to violence at all but even that disgusted him. The image of an innocent Gerard being so viciously attacked by creatures he didn't even know actually existed made him sick to his stomach.

"Who—" Mikey said with a trembling voice. "Who did that? Do you know?"

Gerard shook his head. "I mean, I feel like I've seen their faces, but I don't know any of them personally. They must be local, though."

"God, vampires in New Jersey. What kind of shithole are we living in…?" Frank mused.

"I'm just saying, it's probably best for you to keep a garlic clove in your pocket from now on," Gerard said

"Duly noted," Mikey responded. "Man, Pete is gonna freak when he hears this."

Frank glared at Mikey. "You're gonna tell other people about this?" 

"Just Pete." Frank's glare didn't let up so Mikey continued to justify himself, "He's my best friend, of course I'm telling him."

Frank looked away. "Whatever. But if this starts to spread around school be prepared to be sent to a psych ward."

Frank suddenly felt the room temperature rise back to normal as Gerard tried to ease up the atmosphere. "Hey now, let's keep it civil you two. It's fine Mikey, I know how much you like Pete, you can tell him."

"You don't own Gerard, Frank," Mikey continued, ignoring Gerard. "It's not up to you who can and can't see him."

Frank just huffed. He couldn't help feeling sort of entitled to all this, but he also knew that this whole situation was never even meant to involve him in the first place. 

"I'd also like to talk to Ray again," Gerard added. "Hope he's okay."

"Ray?" asked Frank 

"Gerard's friend from his class," Mikey responded. "You probably don't know him."

That was true, since Frank and Mikey's cliques were completely different. With all this ghost/vampire business going around though, Frank was open to meeting new people. Who knew, one of them could end up being a zombie-werewolf at this point.

"I bet you'll love Ray," Gerard said to Frank. "He's so super chill!"

"Oh, so Frank's gonna tag along?" Mikey asked pointedly. Frank couldn't help but be offended.

"Well yeah, why not? He's my new friend!" Gerard smiled at Frank, while Frank cheekily stuck out his tongue at Mikey.

Mikey rolled his eyes but Frank's sure he'll rub off on him… eventually.

"Well," Frank said. "I think I'm gonna give you guys some space." He began walking towards the door. 

"Make sure to come by my grave tomorrow at like two o'clock, or something!" Gerard called out.

"Thanks again, Frank," said Mikey with a shy smile.

"It's no problem, man. Later you two!" Frank then let himself out, saying thank you and goodbye to Mrs. Way before making his way home. 

He knew the first thing he was gonna do as soon as he got home was sleep all this excitement off.


	3. Chapter 3

It was Saturday, early in the afternoon. Frank couldn't stop thinking about the day before; he knew it wasn't a dream or a hallucination. He couldn't wait to see Gerard again today. He was less excited about Mikey but he knew the brothers were a package deal, so he was willing to put up with him.

He rushed downstairs and called out to his mom, "I'm going out for a bit!"

It was a beautiful autumn day outside: chilly but not cold, only slightly cloudy, and Frank loved the crunch of the leaves scattered on the ground. He was practically skipping to the graveyard—which would seem psychotic to anyone who didn't know he had a friend there waiting for him.

If Frank was being honest though, with the amount of time he spent hanging out at the cemetery, he was kind of surprised he hadn't met a ghost sooner.

Once he reached the place, he quickly sought after his new friend's tombstone.

He found it before even getting that close as, sat atop the headstone was a boy with short black hair and dark clothes, though slightly off-colour thanks to his ghostly blue glow.

"Hey Gerard! Is Mikey not here yet?"

Gerard whipped his head around, smiling at the sight of Frank's face. "Hi! Oh, uh, Mikey's still not too crazy about seeing my grave , so we're just gonna meet up with him and Ray instead."

Though he hadn’t known Gerard for very long, he could tell he was upset by Mikey still refusing to come and visit Gerard. Though Frank couldn't say he wholly blamed Mikey either. It must be so jarring to accept that his brother is technically dead, even though they can still communicate.

"Well, they must be waiting for us right?" Gerard nodded. "Then lead the way, ghost boy."

And lead the way he did. The two ended up in a petite and fairly cheap coffee shop. Frank saw Mikey sat on the seat by the window, and sat across him was a different boy with brown curly hair.

Mikey spotted Frank and Gerard, and stood up from his seat, holding a finger up at the boy he was sat with before speeding up to the two.

"Hey Mikey." Frank waved hello.

"Hi Frank… Hey Gee. Uh, I told Ray about everything before you came over—you know, so that he doesn't get too shocked. He says he believes me but I think he's just being nice 'cause he thinks I've gone mad from grief, or something."

Gerard smiled like that's what he expected. "Alright, let's sit over there, and you can tell me when to show myself," he said to Frank.

Mikey gripped Frank's sleeve and began to tug him in the direction of the cafe table, "c'mon. Frank, you sit next to Ray."

Once they got to the table, Mikey and Frank sat next to each other while Frank sat in the opposite seat next to Ray, waving a little. "Hey, name's Frank."

"Ray Toro," the other boy responded, his voice bright and cheerful. "So Mikey tells me that you and him have been talking to a… friend of mine? Is that true?" Though his voice was still super cheery, there was a somewhat condescending bite to his words, like a psychiatrist talking to a disturbed child. He thought Frank and Mikey were batshit crazy, but was clearly trying to hide it. "I get it, you know. Sometimes I still see Gerard too…"

Mikey pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, like this is what he'd been dealing with all afternoon.

Frank looked over at the real Gerard to confirm if that was true, if he had haunted Ray from any time between his death and now. Gerard just shook his head and shrugged his shoulders—he had no clue what Ray was talking about.

"Er, no," Frank began. "Mikey's telling the truth: ghosts and shit, they're real. Gerard's here now, actually," he said with a smirk.

Ray looked uncomfortable, like he was searching for the right thing to say, so Frank cut in before he could spout anymore well-intentioned lies. "Gerard, do your thing man."

From Frank and Mikey's perspective, Gerard looked like he didn't do anything, but then Ray suddenly convulsed, the colour in his face immediately drained and looked like he'd just seen a… you know.

Ray looked around at Frank and Mikey disbelievingly, then he looked around the cafe to see if anyone else could see this shit, "No one else can see me, just us," Gerard explained.

Ray suddenly looked like he was about to start crying, "Gerard," he whispered.

Gerard waves nervously. "Hey man. Missed you."

Ray wipes his eyes on his sleeves, trying to maintain composure in a public setting, "Gee. Man...man what happened to you? How did you…?"

Gerard gave Ray a half-smile, "Vampires," he responded flatly.

Ray clearly couldn't comprehend any of what was happening. He lay his head flat on the table, Frank rubbed Ray's back reassuringly. “Yeah, I’m having trouble understanding all this as well.”

Ray lifted his head up slightly, looking at Gerard. “You mean like, vampires? Actual blood-sucking vampires? Like, Dracula or Blade or something?”

“Exactly,” he answered. “Don’t know who exactly but… I don’t think New Jersey is safe anymore.”

“Anymore?” Mikey repeated, with a chuckle.

Gerard laughed too. “Heh, well it was never exactly a safe haven before but, I don’t know, I feel like it’s even worse now.”

“Now that you mention it,” Frank said. “There has been a lot more gang crime lately. A lot of knife shit. You know Gerard, your death was reported as the cause of a knife attack.”

Gerard looked surprised. “Well that’s not true, they didn’t use knives, they used their bare claws. Stung like a motherfucker though, they might as well have been using knives.”

Ray looked at Frank and Gerard with concern. “So, all the other recent attacks…do you think those were all done by vampires too?”

Gerard nodded solemnly. “I don’t doubt it…”

Gerard, Ray and Mikey all sat in silence, anxiety looming in the air. Frank couldn’t stand this aura of depression. “Do, Mikey! You said you had another friend you wanna tell Gerard about.”

“Yeah, Pete.”

“Well, it’s still early, how about we all order something from here then we go see Pete next?”

Mikey nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I think i’ll get something for Pete too.” he held his hand up to call attention to the waitress.

Gerard looked like he was hit with a wave of misery as the waitress came to take their orders. When she left, Gerard suddenly wailed. It was loud and ghostly, and sent a chill down everybody's spine. “What's the matter Gee?” Ray asked

“Being dead was fine ‘til I realised: no more coffee!” He wails agan and Frank was pretty sure he saw one of the cashiers shiver.

Ray and Mikey just chuckled, but Frank felt kinda sorry for him. “Are you a big coffee fan?” he asked Gerard.

Gerard just looked at him incredulously so Mikey answered for him. “A ‘big coffee fan’ doesn’t even begin to cut it. Gerard drank coffee like it was his lifeblood.”

Ray laughed. “Maybe you could do without the caffeine addiction, Gerard.”

Gerard stuck his tongue out playfully while the other two laughed. Frank looked at the three boys, wondering how things would have fared if Gerard wasn’t dead. He probably would’ve continued to partially ignore their existence, if he was being honest. As guilty as he felt for thinking this, he was a little happy about Gerard’s fate; Mikey, Ray and him are all pretty cool people. Shame he never bothered to hang out with any of them before.

The waitress came with their orders and the four sat and chatted idly for the next half hour or so.


	4. Chapter 4

Frank had never hung out with Pete Wentz, in or outside school, so he wondered how Pete would react to suddenly seeing Frank insert himself into Mikey’s life like he has. After their coffee break, the four were headed over to meet-up with Pete at his house. 

Ray Toro offered to drive them over to Pete's, so with Ray in the driver's seat, Gerard next to him (not that he was buckled in or anything), and Mikey and Frank in the back, the crew headed over to Wentz's place.

They arrived a short ride later. Frank could see a small smile appear on Mikey's face as he exited the vehicle—he must be excited to see his best friend, even if it’s under kind of a weird circumstance.

He is the first one at the door which opens suddenly. On the other side, a boy with a hoodie and hair swept over his eye bursts out and gives Mikey a powerful hug—that actually looked like it hurt.

Once he let go of Mikey, waves hello to Ray and Frank, seemingly completely unbothered by Frank being there.

The boys all entered Pete's house, standing in the living room. It was quiet. "Parent's aren't home so, s'just me right now," Pete explained. "And you," he says to Mikey, swinging an arm over his waist, (as suggestive as it looked, it was likely just because Pete wasn’t tall enough to reach Mikey's shoulders) "Told me that you had some big shit to talk about."

Mikey nodded. "Yeah man. Like, huge shit. Figured you'd wanna know. Oh! Also here, i got you a coffee from the cafe I was just at."

"Aww, thanks babe," Pete cooed adoringly as he took the beverage from Mikey. "Always thinking of me, love that about you."

Frank raised an eyebrow at Ray who just shrugged, unbothered by their antics. This must be the norm for those two, then.

"So…" Pete said after his playful flirting with Mikey. He took a long sip of his drink and carried on. "What was so important that you had to drag Mr. Iero over to my place?"

"Pssh, I wasn't dragged here," Frank said.

"No, it was just fate… or rotten luck," Mikey mumbled under his breath, but loud enough for Frank to hear, possibly on purpose. "It has to do with my brother," Mikey then said.

Pete's smile faded. "Oh yeah? What's the matter?"

"Well, he's sort of… a ghost. And like, he's here. Right now. In this house. He was also killed by vampires… so…" Mikey said, trying to be smooth about the whole thing, but really, how smooth can one be trying to explain that your dead brother is a supernatural entity?

To everyone's surprise Pete didn't really react much. He raised his eyebrows in mild shock. "Uh huh… can I see him?"

"Uh s-sure," said Mikey, who nodded to Gerard. Using whatever ghost powers Gerard had, he made himself visible to Pete who's eyes widened in response.

"Woah," he gasped. "Wow, hi Gerard! So you're like, dead, huh?"

"Hehe, yeah pretty mu—" Gerard shut up when Pete suddenly leaped over to him, running his hands through his see-through body.

"It's so cold," Pete mused, waving his hands straight through Gerard's torso. "Can you feel it? Does it hurt?"

"I can feel it, and it feels fucking weird, stop," Gerard complained, floating backwards, out of Pete's reach.

However, Pete's eyes were wide with curiosity. "Do you remember what dying felt like? Is heaven real? Is hell real? Which did you go to—oh! Did you see God? Satan—"

"Pete!" Ray and Mikey yelled simultaneously. Pete looked back at the two innocently, who just sent him disapproving glances. Taking the hint, he backed away from the ghost and stood next to Mikey again.

Frank looked over at Gerard who seemed pretty unbothered, considering. "well, I hate to spoil it but death isn't like that… at all." 

This got everybody else's attention too. Ray asked Gerard, "So, what was it like?"

Gerard took a minute to think of what to say. "Well… I didn't see any hell or heaven. I mean, maybe I did, but I sure couldn't tell. No, instead I saw, like, a parade? A bunch of weird people, looked like a bunch of comic book characters—it was," he chuckled, the memory apparently amusing to him. "It was so strange, you wouldn't believe it!"

Mikey looked incredibly bothered, and a little hurt. "Well I'm glad you found your death so enjoyable…"

"Aw, Mikey no. I mean, it wasn't ALL great. I missed you guys, for one," Gerard said, furrowing his brows. Frank couldn't help feeling a little left out. "Also, death hurts. A lot. I may not have flesh anymore but I can still, like, feel the pain, you know." He clenched his shirt, reminding Frank of the gruesome cuts underneath. 

A strange expression suddenly flashed onto Pete's face. Kinda looked like… guilty?  
Apparently Mikey noticed this too and asked, "Pete, you okay?"

Pete stayed silent. 

"Pete?" Mikey repeated.

Pete sighed, cracking under the pressure of Mikey's terrifying interrogation skills, "it's just… Gerard was killed by vampires so, I don't know, I feel kinda bad about it."

"Well, yeah," Ray said. "We all do. Gerard's death was just so sudden-"

"I'm not sad about his death," Pete interrupted. His blunt statement caused everyone to glare at him so he was quick to amend his statement. "No offence Gee, of course I'm sad you're dead but, like, I'm more guilty about how you died."

No one was following, so Pete continued. "He was killed by vampires!"

"Yeah, we know," Frank said.

Pete dragged his hand over his face in annoyance. He huffed, arms crossed, taking a second to think of how to articulate the point he was trying to get across.

"It has occurred to me," Pete finally said, speaking slowly and gently  
"That you don't know that I… sort of… am…… a vampire." His voice went an octave higher at that last word, making it sound more like a question then a confession.

Pete stared, looking for approval. The four boys just stared back at Pete. Five boys stood in a room, just staring. This went on for a considerable amount of time. 

Frank knew Pete was emo but… a vampire? That's a stretch.

"It's true!" Pete argued. "Look at my teeth!" He opened his mouth, showcasing two brilliantly sharp fangs. Frank wasn't totally oblivious, he’d noticed them before but he just assumed that was Pete being an emo tryhard who had his teeth purposefully sharpened so he could just look like a vampire. But if Gerard was a ghost, who was to say that Pete wasn't a vampire rtoo? Considering everything that has happened to Frank in the past 24 hours, he was ready to believe just about anything.

Mikey, on the other hand, was not convinced. "Bullshit. I've known you for years, you're not a fucking vampire."

"You think I'm lying, man?" Pete asked, looking pretty offended. "You saw my teeth."

"So your canines are sharp, that doesn't mean anything. What about the sun? You're out in the sun, like, all the time."

Ray nodded at Mikey's point. Pete was not happy though. He scoffed, rolling his eyes. "That whole sun thing is a myth you know. Vampires aren't burnt to a crisp the second they see the sun, we just have sensitive skin. Can't be out in the sun too long or it irritates the skin, why do you think I wear so many hoodies in summer?"

"I—I don't know man, I just assumed you had a disease you didn't wanna talk about."

"You see, this is why communication is such a key part of a relationship," Frank interjected, hoping to light the mood. Mikey scowled at Frank—if looks could kill. At least Ray found it funny, Frank thought.

Gerard looked at Pete with a distraught expression. "You're not one of the vamps who…"

Pete looked back at Gerard like he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Dude I didn't kill you! You think I could murder my best friend's brither and then carry on with my week like nothing happened?!"

Gerard looked down, like he felt bad for even suggesting it.

"But…" Pete began, looking just as guilty as before. "I know a lot of vampires, I could help figure out who did."

Gerard suddenly jumped up, grinning with excitement. "Hey! It'll be like a murder mystery—guys you can avenge my death!"

Ray shook his head in disbelief "This is not how I expected my Saturday to go…"

"Me neither, but it's more fun than anything I had planned," admitted Frank.

"So," began Mikey, getting the conversation back on track. "Pete, who's your first suspect?"

"He's not really a suspect but, I know a guy who could give us some clues. He's pretty experienced with vampire shit. We have a… complicated relationship, but…" he trailed off.

Mikey placed his hand on Pete's arm. "Doesn't matter who, if he can help us figure this out then take us to him."

Pete smiled at Mikey, a hopeful glint in his eye. "Alright. You guys stay here, let me call him up."

Pete left the room to make the phone call to this mysterious first lead. The rest of the guys exchanged differing looks. 

Frank couldn't speak for everyone else, but his stomach was filled with butterflies; a mix of nerves and excitement pooled in his guts. This was a really strange Saturday.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BTW, I made a spotify playlist of songs that match the vibe of this fic, have a listen while you read (I may add more songs if I find/remember any that fit):  
> https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7opHWeRN2Mmgq0grfglXuq?si=jKzT7jE9SK6MPvPJ6KJlVw

Frank, Ray and the Way brothers were all sitting on the sofa of Pete Wentz's living room. What started as a conversation about Gerard's new condition spiralled into an investigation involving Vampires, which apparently really did exist. Wentz left the room to make a phone call, and after about 10 minutes, re-entered his living room with a smile on his face.

Frank looked at him expectantly. "So what's the news?"

"I explain everything to my friend, and he's totally down to talk vampires with you guys."

Gerard grinned excitedly. "When do we get to meet him?"

"Well he lives a little far, and since he's the one doing us a favour, I figured we'd drive over to him." 

Ray quirked an eyebrow. "And I'm guessing you'll be using my car?"

"Obviously," Wentz said. 

Mikey sprung up from the sofa. "Well then, we should leave now, right?" He was looking specifically at Gerard for an answer.

Gerard nodded vigorously (causing Frank to wonder if ghosts got headaches). "Sure, if you think we should."

Pete clapped his hands together excitedly. "Awesome, let's go talk to our first lead! Mikey, quick: call shotgun. I want you to sit next to me."

"Oh, shotgun!" Mikey said, flinging his arm in the air. The two headed towards the front door so they could reach the car first. 

"Wait, that's not fair! You can't just tell someone to call shotgun, that ruins the whole point!" Ray yelled, getting up so he could catch up to them. "Also it's my car!"

The three left the house, arguing about the rules of Shotgun as they did. Frank, who was beginning to get up, looked over at Gerard. 

Despite how eager Gerard seemed just a second ago, he was still sitting down, looking into his lap with his brows knitted tightly together.

"Gerard?" Frank asked. "You good?"

Gerard perked up, snapping out of his dissociative state. "Oh! Yeah, I'm great!" He quickly got off the sofa, floating above ground and started smiling widely again. "Let's go find my killer!"

"Someone's a little excited?" Frank said, posing the statement as a question.

Gerard's grin faltered a little and answered Frank's question with another.

"Why wouldn't I be excited to find out who killed me?"

Frank shrugged. "Well, I just figured that being murdered would come with some… baggage?" He gave Gerard a small, friendly smile. "If you're feeling a little uneasy about this, that's totally okay. I know I don't know you as well as the others but…"

Frank paused, his eyes cast downwards to the floor—he didn't know why but suddenly felt nervous. He could feel Gerard staring at him so he finished off his sentence. "But you can trust me. You know that, right?"

Gerard didn't respond. He just smiled. Frank smiled back as he felt the atmosphere of the room change into one more cosy and inviting.

The two boys basked in the glow of each other's kind, friendship-filled smiles before the loud honk of a car horn cut in, abruptly ruining the moment. 

Gerard flew out of the room, startled. Frank, who was just as flustered, quickly followed suit.

Frank closed the front door. Pete honked the vehicle horn a couple more times and yelled out through the window. "Gerard! Frank! Hurry up!!"

"God, we’re coming, stop honking!" Frank shouted back. Gerard swooped in front of Frank to sit down next to Ray, leaving Frank to enter the vehicle last, sliding in the backseat beside Gerard.

"Are we all ready?" Pete called from the front seat before driving to their next destination.

***

The drive wasn't actually that long, only lasting a little over half an hour. Frank didn't know who's house they had stopped by, but the others shared varied expressions of shock.

Mikey groaned. "Are you serious Pete? He's a vampire too?"

"We’re all hidden in plain sight," said Pete smugly.

"We've got to start paying more attention to who we make friends with," Gerard added.

They all unbuckled their seatbelts (apart from Gerard, who didn't put his on in the first place) and headed towards their destination. Before any of them even entered the house, the front door swung open. Greeting the boys with a wave, a tall boy with dark hair stood behind the door. "Come in guys!" He then pulled Pete and Mikey in for a tight hug. 

After successfully hugging all the air out of both boys’ lungs, he beckoned to Frank. "Hey man, don't think we've met. I'm Gabe!"

"Cool. I'm Frank. I'm sorta new to the group," responded Frank.

"In that case welcome, hope we hang out more. Now come on, we've got a lot to talk about." Gabe ushered Frank in along with the others.

Once inside, the group (excluding Gerard) said their hello's to the boy's parents before heading straight to his bedroom.

Gabe stood in the centre of his room. Everyone else positioned themselves in various places in front of him, giving Gabe their full attention. 

"Wow. Sorry, it's just," Gabe stuttered. He pointed a finger at Gerard, who looked uncomfortable at the gesture. "I'm just having a hard time focusing… Gerard is literally a ghost. He's floating! Isn't that sort of… fucked up?"

"I actually think vampires are a little more fucked up than ghosts but each to their own, I guess," Mikey said, somewhat passive aggressively.

Frank was getting kind of a weird vibe from Pete and Gabe, while Mikey was radiating a different vibe entirely, giving suspicious looks to them both.

It was clear Ray and Gerard weren't going to comment on it, so Frank took it upon himself to get the ball rolling. "So, Gabe was it? Pete said you two had a complicated relationship, care to share the gossip?"

"Yeah," Mikey piggybacked off of Frank's question. "I mean, we’re all friends, I didn't even know there was anything complicated about it."

Gabe smiled knowingly. "Well it's not actually complicated at all. It’s just that I'm the one who turned him into a vampire."

Everybody but Pete and Gabe made a noise of shock. 

Mikey was plain astounded. He stuttered for a moment before finally finding the words. "Gabe how could you?!"

"He didn't do anything wrong, it was completely consensual," Pete said in an attempt to calm Mikey down.

Mikey was still flustered, horrified at how little he knew his so-called best friends. "I… I need a moment." He finally said, as he slumped his way to the corner of Gabe's room to stare at the wall and brood.

While Mikey was dealing with whatever emotions he was going through, Frank thought it was a good idea to get everyone's focus back to the matter at hand—Gerard. "Pete also says you're a good lead for figuring out who killed Gerard. That's actually why we're here."

"Right, yeah!" Gabe enthused. "Okay, so I should probably preface this by saying that I don't know exactly who killed Gerard. But, I think I can help you get a little closer to that person." 

He inched closer to Gerard as he continued to speak. "So I don't know if you've heard, but there's been a huge increase of violent attacks in town lately, specifically on your side of town."

"'Knife crimes" right?" Ray asked, using air quotes for emphasis.

"Right," Gabe confirmed. "Well, rumour has it that there's a couple of teen vamps who are slowly trying to take over the area as, like, their personal feeding grounds."

Frank eyed Gabe suspiciously. "And who did this rumour come from?"

"Well, there really aren't that many vamps in this town, and the majority of us are in the same circle of friends; word gets around quick," Gabe said with a shrug.

"That's not very helpful," said Gerard, speaking for the first time since they entered Gabe's room. "All you've told us is whoever killed me was a group of vampires which is literally the only thing we already knew."

Ray shook his head slightly at Gerard's statement, before making his own. "Actually, Gabe did give us some decent clues."

The boys looked on at Ray expectantly, he continued. "I think it's safe to assume that Gerard's killer, or at least someone really closely linked to his killer, is probably one of Pete and Gabe's vampire friends."

"Right!" Frank agreed. "And since Gabe said they're from our side of town, they probably go to our school."

Gabe nodded. "And there are a lot more vamps in your school than mine. All I've got is Travis and William, and I know they aren't the killers."

"Definitely not them," Pete affimed.

Mikey turned away from his sulking corner immediately upon hearing that, looking at the two vampires, slack-jawed in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Travis AND William?! Jesus, am I a shitty friend for not noticing, or all you guys horrible people for not telling me?"

"That's not important right now," Frank interrupted, causing Mikey to angrily glare at him. "Which of your vampire friends go to our school, and which do you think are likely suspects?" He asked Gabe and Pete.

Pete remained silent, mulling over the possibilities. However, Gabe already had an answer. "Oh! You could try Patrick!"

This time, Mikey and Pete both gave Gabe horrified looks. 

Gerard furrowed his brows. "Patrick Stump?"

"Yeah!" Gabe said, enthusiastically. "He may not look it, but he's pretty vicious when it comes to feeding. He hunts fairly regularly too, so I wouldn't be surprised if he was part of these recent murder sprees."

Pete shook his head profusely. "No. No, no no, no! Patrick did NOT kill Gerard. Yeah, he can be feisty when he's hungry, but he wouldn't mutilate someone!"

Ray groaned, his face looked slightly doubtful as he spoke. "Patrick is such a nice guy, I don't think I could believe he'd do this even if it's true! But this case is about following leads, and he's our next one."

Pete looked angry, and a little upset. "Fine. But you can see him in your own time. And keep my name out of it, or he'll think I told you guys that he's a vampire." He then sighed, worry written all over his face. "Well, anyways, I did my job. If you really need anything else, just call me. I'm gonna walk home."

"Aw! Leaving so soon?" Gabe complained. 

"Sorry man, I'll come by next week, under less vampire-related circumstances." He walked over to the door, pausing to wave goodbye before leaving the room.

The other boys waved back, apart from Mikey. "I think I should go after him."

Gabe, Gerard and Ray agreed but Frank was a little confused about Pete's sudden shift in mood. Mikey explained, "me and Pete are close, but he and Patrick are like brothers. I don't think he appreciates his best friend being accused of murdering his other best friend's brother, so… I'll see you guys later."

"We'll talk to Patrick on Monday. After school," Ray called out. Mikey nodded and left the room to chase after Pete.

"So," Gabe said to his remaining guests, "I've got a couple of b-list horror films on DVD, you guys wanna watch?"

Looked like their mission was put on hold until Monday, but Frank had no problem spending what was left of the day watching a movie with his new friends.


	6. Chapter 6

Saturday was dramatic but ended on a rather flat note.

Sunday came and went, but allowed Frank to recharge.

By the time it was Monday, Frank couldn't focus on any of his lessons. He couldn't help glancing back at Pete and Mikey in the classes they shared. And in the classes he didn't share with them, he speculated about which other students might be vampires. Maybe there were some vampires in the staff too!

He also hoped no one thought he was a creep whenever his eyes wandered to a person's mouth as they spoke—he was trying to check for fangs!

When classes finally ended, Frank rushed over to find Mikey and the others so that they could confront Patrick Stump. They decided to meet up in front of the library. When Frank arrived, Mikey and Ray were there, having their own conversation. They stopped once they saw him, waving hello.

"Is Pete coming along?" Frank asked.

Mikey shook his head. "Doesn't wanna deal with Patrick. I honestly think he’s kinda pissed at us for going through with this, but we can handle it ourselves. Just let me do the talking. And Ray."

"So, what, you want me to just say nothing the whole time?" 

"Yeah, if you can help it." Mikey smirked, teasingly. "He's probably in the music room, come on."

The three walked to the music room. It was fairly empty, with a few students dotted around, minding their own business with their instruments. A boy with a trucker hat was sitting down, elegantly tickling the ivories of a grand piano—none other than Patrick Stump.

Two other boys were accompanying him though: One had long brown hair and glasses. The other, who looked a little younger, had short dark hair and piercing blue eyes.

None of the boys noticed Frank, Mikey and Ray come in, too engrossed in the piano playing.

"Mikey," Frank whispered. "Who are those other two?"

"Andy and Joe, just some other friends," He answered back, nonchalantly.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they turned out to be vampires too," Ray added, chuckling. Mikey, not finding the humor in that, gave him an annoyed glance. 

"Let's just go to him, I'm sure it'll be fine." As he walked over to Patrick, Ray and Frank followed. 

Mikey seemed set on taking charge, so Frank stood slightly aside as the conversation played out.

"Hi Patrick," said Mikey, tapping the boy on the shoulder. Patrick's playing came to a stop as he turned around to face Mikey.

"Oh, hey Mikey" His face softened. "How've you been?"

Mikey looked confused for a second, he probably forgot that everyone thinks he's still grieving over his dead brother. "Oh, erm. I've been fine, thanks. We sort of have to talk."

"Me and you?" Patrick asked.

"You and us," Mikey clarified. "We need to discuss vampires ."

No one expected him to be so direct. Patrick and his two friends looked extremely baffled.

"I'm sorry, I don't… Mikey, What are you talking about?"

"It's okay Patrick, we all know you're a vampire. You don't need to hide it from us," Mikey said, sweetly.

Patrick's jaw dropped while Joe and Andy continued to look bewildered.

"Did he just say vampire?" Asked Andy.

Patrick shook his head. "No! I have no idea what he-"

Patrick was suddenly cut off when Joe grabbed his chin, peering into his mouth. "Is that why your teeth are so sharp? Because you're a vampire?!"

"And is that why you always wear a hat? To block out the sun?" Asked Andy, joining in on the interrogation. 

Patrick pulled away from Joe's grip and slapped his hands over his mouth. "Mikey what the hell?!" He yelled, though the hands over his mouth slightly muffled his speech.

Mikey's eyes widened. "They didn't… know?"

"No, I never told them! And I never told you! Or you!" He removed one of his hands from his mouth to point at Ray. He then pointed at Frank. "And I never even _speak_ to you!"

"I guess I wasn’t the only one out of the loop,” Mikey whispered to himself. “But- but Pete and Gabe knew!" he objected, flushing with embarrassment

"Because they're both vampires, you fucking-"

"Wait, Pete and Gabe are vampires too?"

"No way!"

Joe and Andy perked up. They looked like they were ready to burst with questions. Patrick looked at them with dread before looking back at Mikey.

"Micheal, you are so incredibly stupid, I have no words! Just know that I will get you for this," said Patrick in a tone so threatening that even Frank felt scared.

He then hastily rushed out of the music room without another word. 

Joe called out, "Patrick wait up!"

"Yeah! I wanna ask you something!" Andy added. The two boys then ran out, in hot pursuit of Patrick to pester him some more.

That did not go well... That went the entire opposite of well. 

Ray tutted. "Well. That's a shame."

"Oops," Mikey said quietly, shrinking from the embarrassment.

Frank gave Mikey an “I told you so” look. " _Just let me do the talking_ ," he mocked.

Mikey didn't have a rebuttal, for once. It seemed he knew he fucked up.

"We should probably go tell Pete about this," Ray suggested, "I'll drive to his place."

Mikey and Frank had no objections, nodding in agreement. They began to exit the room, each of them feeling reasonably mortified, before a voice called out for them. "Guys, excuse me, wait a second!"

Frank turned around to see a boy with short black hair and a guitar strapped over his shoulder walking up to them. He looked slightly alarmed.

Mikey recognised the boy "Brendon? What's the matter?"

Brendon rubbed the back of his neck in a shy manner. "Well, I was sort of eavesdropping, couldn't help but hear you mention Gerard. You asked Patrick where he was on the night of Gerard's murder."

Mikey looked at Brendon attentively. "Do you know something about it?"

Brendon nodded solemnly. "I'm sorry, I wanted to tell you, but you weren’t in for, like, weeks."

Mikey leaned in, fully focused. "I'm here now, what do you know?"

Brendon then shook his head. "It wasn't Patrick. It was someone else. He's in the same class as Patrick and I…"

He paused again. Mikey grabbed onto Brendon's shoulders, silently begging him to continue.

"It was Ryan. Ryan Ross. I don't know why, I didn't think he had anything against Gerard. Maybe he was just hungry.” He sounded panicked as he rushed to speak. “Last I saw him he was headed behind the school building, you should get there quickly."

Ray and Frank shared a look of confusion, not knowing who Ryan was, but Mikey was looking fired up. "Let's go guys," he said as he ran out.

"Good luck!" Brendon called out as they all left to find this Ryan Ross guy.


	7. Chapter 7

For such a lanky kid, Mikey could really sprint. Frank was fairly nimble too, so he had no problem catching up. Ray was a little behind the both of them.

The three of them managed to dodge any other students in the way and thankfully didn’t bump into any teachers. Within a matter of minutes they were behind the school building, where they saw a boy with brown hair hunched over someone—another student.

Ray gasped, the boy whipped his head around. He looked savage: shrunken pupils, blood smeared across his face. The girl beneath him was out cold. Unconscious or dead? Frank wasn’t too sure. He wasn't very keen on finding out either, just in case it happened to be the latter option.

This must have been Ryan Ross.

Unexpectedly, he broke out into a smile. “Mikey, Ray? Hey guys!”

He gently placed the girl’s body on the floor, with her back leaned against the building and walked over to the boys with a gentle smile. “What’s up? I obviously wasn’t expecting company,” he chuckled, wiping the blood from his face.

Mikey was not reciprocating to any of the enthusiasm. “What’s the matter with you?” He asked in a voice so little, Frank thought he might cry.

Ryan’s face dropped. “What do you mean?”

“He means Gerard!” Frank raised his voice, stepping forward, blocking Ryan from walking closer to Mikey and Ray. “You’ve been having a lot of fun lately huh? All of this feeding. Oh and what about all the recent attacks? Were they all you?”

Ryan seemed stunned for a while, his face flashed through a series of emotions in just a matter of seconds: shock, confusion, anger. But it then settled for a smirk. He began to laugh.

“Do you think this is funny?!” Ray asked, looking horrified.

Ryan didn’t respond, he just kept laughing, harder even. Frank clenched his fists, he was beyond pissed and utterly astonished at the audacity Ryan was displaying. “How’s this for funny?!” He yelled before taking a swing as Ryan. 

Ryan swiftly dodged the punch, catching it in his hand before pulling frank towards him and slamming his back into the wall of the school building.

“Frank!” Mikey and Ray yelled simultaneously. They tried to run in and save him but stopped in their tracks as Ryan dove his teeth into Frank’s neck.

The only thing stopping Frank from screaming too loudly was Ryan’s hand covering his mouth. Mikey and Ray were paralyzed, they didn't know what to do. Nor did Frank. 

Strangely, Ryan wasn't actually sucking his blood. He was just biting—enough to draw blood, but he clearly didn’t have the intention to drain anything out of Frank. Maybe he was waiting for Frank to back down, or beg for his life.

Frank’s heart was pounding against his rib cage. And although he was panicking, he’d be damned if he cried uncle. His instincts took over and he ferociously bit into Ryan’s hand. Frank’s mouth filled with a disgusting metallic taste—he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why vampires were so obsessed with the taste of blood.

Ryan howled in pain, staggering back. Mikey suddenly snapped out of his shocked state and ran over to Frank, while Ray took initiative to grab on to Ryan.

“Frank, are you okay?!” he pleaded. Frank just groaned in response, trying to pull himself together.

Ryan scowled, but stayed in place, rubbing his bitten hand. “You shouldn't have done that," he said to frank. "That was really dumb, you shouldn't have bit me."

“Be quiet!” Mikey shouted, trembling over Frank, who was leaning against the wall for support. “Why did you do it Ryan, why did you kill my brother?!”

“Mikey, I never touched your brother. I really liked Gerard!” Ryan said, sounding offended that Mikey would even consider a thing like that.

“Bullshit!” Frank spat. “If it wasn’t you, then why did you laugh? Why did you come after me like that?”

“I laughed because I couldn’t believe what you were accusing me of. And I came after you because you were about to punch me!” Ryan yelled. “Plus you bit me, how am I the bad guy here?!”

“I only bit you because you bit me!” Frank yelled back, even louder.

Ryan rolled his eyes. “I don’t even know where you’d get the idea that I’d hurt Gerard. Mikey, come on, we’re friends.”

Mikey was absolutely lost, frowning in frustration and confusion. “But… Brendon said- he said it was you.”

Ryan just raised an eyebrow. “Did he?” He paused and hummed. “I think I need to have a word with him.”

“So it really wasn’t you who killed Gerard? Do you promise?” Mikey asked, desperate for reassurance.

“I promise, cross my heart,” Ryan responded almost instantly. This seemed to be enough for Mikey who nodded. Ray let go of Ryan, seeing as everything had cleared up.

“Sorry,” Ryan added as an afterthought, directed to Frank. “We shouldn't have done that. You should be okay though. Eventually.” Ryan said that last word so quietly, Frank wasn’t sure if he was even meant to hear it.

He pushed himself off of the wall, feeling strong enough to stand on his own. He then rubbed his neck, smudging the blood. He was okay though, just slightly woozy. Nothing to worry about. Plus, Ryan didn’t actually drink any blood. “Yeah, sorry,” Frank finally responded. “Can we go?” he asked Mikey.

Mikey was still frowning but he nodded. “Yeah, alright.”

The boys went their separate ways as they headed home, their tails between their legs. None of them said anything other than “goodbye”, probably because they didn’t want to bring up how much of a bust that was. In a span of less than an hour, they’ve managed to out Patrick in front of his friends, get into a fight and get Frank bitten, while also getting zero helpful information or leads by the end of it.

And Frank’s neck was really starting to hurt now. He wanted to go to the graveyard and talk to Gerard, tell him how horribly everything went, but his body was screaming for him to rest. It was really bizarre since Frank’s been in a number of fights before (all of which have lasted way longer), but none of them drained him like that little tussle with Ryan did. He figured the stress of all the supernatural bullshit had a part to play, though.

When he arrived home, he rushed to the bathroom to wash his neck before collapsing on his bed. Within minutes, he was out like a light before it had even gotten dark outside.


	8. Chapter 8

Frank Iero felt like shit. 

It was a Tuesday morning, but by the time he was supposed to be getting ready for school, he was still tucked in bed, with the duvet over his head.

His mom came into his room when she realised he wasn't up yet, and after checking his temperature, decided that he was in absolutely no state to go to school. He somehow managed to gain a fever overnight.

Frank didn't have a particularly strong immune system. One could argue that his body was generally pretty shoddy. Because of this, he wasn't as worried as he probably should've been—what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. But with that said, he's never been this sick in his entire 16 years of numerous hospital trips and countless infections.

His body was on fire yet he was rapidly shivering. His muscles felt tight and sore. His head was pounding like a drum. And he was hungry. Really, really hungry. When he managed to drag his aching body to the kitchen, he scoffed down practically half the fridge, but all that succeeded in doing was making his stomach churn—he was still starving.

When his state didn't improve after a few days, his mom drove him to the hospital. The doctor couldn't find anything particularly wrong with him though, and sent him back home with a bag of assorted prescription drugs. 

When he wasn't thinking about how badly his body was hurting, or how hungry he was, his mind tended to wander on Gerard. He honestly really missed him. He felt bad that he hadn't gotten any closer to finding Gerard's killer too.

He also thought about Mikey, and Ray. Even Pete and Gabe. Admittedly, he felt like they had all become pretty decent friends, and he had Gerard to thank for that.

Frank was once again bed. A mostly empty bowl of soup was on the bedside table next to him. The curtains were closed, and he had no idea what time or day it was anymore.

He occasionally had violent coughing fits, coughing up splatters of blood.

Frank was dying. He was certain at this point. He just wished he had the energy to call his mother to his room and see her for one last time.

As he fell asleep for what he knew was the last time ever, he dreamt about a strange, pale boy in a leather jacket.

***

Frank was alive. Somehow.

He knew he wasn't being dramatic when he thought he was going to die last night but… here he was. Awake, and fit as a fiddle. 

In fact, he hasn't felt so good in years, though the only symptom that remained was his near unbearable hunger. He sprung out of bed with his newfound strength, going over to check out the state of himself in the mirror.

His heart stopped in its tracks.

His mirror must have broken or something. He touched the glass softly, his hands lightly shaking. Where was his-

"Frankie!" The voice of his mother cut through his thoughts. He immediately ran down to see her.

Frank was startled by how bright it was downstairs. From what he could see, it wasn't particularly sunny outside, but the daylight stung his eyes. And his skin… 

"I heard you stumbling around, good to see you can actually move again. Are you feeling better?" Frank's mom asked once she saw him walk over to her. Frank practically tackled the woman with a hug.

"I thought I was gonna die."

"Honestly, me too," She said softly. "I'm glad we're both wrong."

"Weird question but what day is it?" Frank asked, smiling at her.

“It’s Saturday, so you can take it easy.”

Frank was a little bit surprised. He was only sick for five days, but it felt like forever. Either way, he was itching to go outside again and return to a certain graveyard, and a certain boy who was probably in said graveyard.

“In that case, I’m gonna go outside. I’ve been stuck in my bedroom for long enough.”

His mother nodded in understanding. "Of course, just don't overdo it, okay. You only just recovered."

"Don't worry I won't!" He yelled as he ran upstairs to wash up.

Once in the bathroom, Frank spent more time analysing his reflection in the mirror, or rather, the lack thereof.

"What the fuck, What the fucking fuck?" Frank whispered under his breath. He kept touching the mirror, smearing his fingerprints all over it, as if touching it enough times will magically bring forth his reflection.

He then lifted his hand from the mirror, and delicately placed them onto his face. Cold to the touch. He continued to explore the face he could no longer see, pausing once he reached his mouth. Slowly, he inserted his index finger inside and a sharp prick on his fingertip confirmed his suspicions.

Frank was a vampire now. And that week of terrible, painful sickness must have been the turning process.

Honestly, he wasn’t as upset as he probably should’ve been. Confused? A little. Freaked out? Majorly. But not particularly sad. Pete, Gabe, Patrick and Ryan all seemed fairly happy with their vampire lives. And the fact that he never even knew any of them were vampires before showed that vampire lives probably aren't too different to regular, human lives.

The only thing he wasn't too keen on was the whole ordeal of drinking human blood. He had sworn off of meat for a good few years. Maybe there would be no moral issues if he made sure to leave his victims alive. Or he could steal from blood banks—then he'd feel even less guilty since that blood had been willingly donated. 

Was there any way he could be a vegetarian and a Vampire simultaneously? Frank decided to put a pin in that topic, he'll just ask Pete for advice later.

God, this was so unreal. He couldn’t wait to tell Gerard. Telling Mikey and Ray, on the other hand, seemed a little bit scarier. He didn’t know how they would react—especially Mikey, that kid was far more erratic than Frank originally gave him credit for.

Frank washed up, though the lack of a reflection made it incredibly jarring. He put on some sunscreen and a hoodie to protect him from the sun and left the house, walking at brisk pace straight for the graveyard. Wow, he even walked faster. It was like being a vampire naturally dialled all his bodily functions up to eleven.

He arrived at the graveyard in about half the time he usually would, but it seemed the space by Gerard’s grave was occupied. There were people there: one was sitting atop the tombstone, while one was kneeling on the ground, their head buried into the others chest. As Frank got closer, one of them turned around. It was Pete Wentz. Frank could then assume that the one facing Pete’s chest was Mikey. Frank sped up a little so he could talk to them. “Pete, you okay?”

Pete just nodded his head towards Mikey.

“Mikey?” Frank asked instead. “What’s the matter?”

Mikey slowly lifted his head up, his eyes were puffy and red and his cheeks were soaked in tears. He looked confused. “Frank?” he choked out. “Where were you? Where have you been?”

“I was sick!” Frank answered, hunkering down to the floor so that he was closer to Mikey. “Why are you crying? Did something happen to Gerard?”

“Not exactly,” a voice said from behind. Frank recognised it as Gerard immediately. He spun his head around to see the boy he missed so much—and there he was, floating a few inches above ground in all his ghostly glory. Next to Gerard was Ray, but Frank could have sworn that he wasn't there just a second ago.

“Ray, you look… different.” Frank noticed, squinting as he inspected the older boy. He looked paler, but not in a dead way, like Frank. Ray’s complexion was more of a glowy pale. He also seemed … taller? Frank slowly worked his way down from Ray's head to his feet. Funny, it sort of looked like his feet weren't touching the ground.

Wait.

“RAY! HOLY SHIT, YOU'RE-”

“I know, I’m dead, you do not need to remind me,” Ray said, chucking awkwardly.

“But how?! When?”

“How do you think? It was vampires! It’s always vampires!” Mikey cut in, managing to shout through his sobs.

Okay, Frank definitely wasn’t going to tell Mikey that he was a vampire now. He rubbed his temples, trying to make sense of all of this. “Was it the same guys who took out Gerard?”

Ray shrugged. “It was a sneak attack, didn’t even know it happened till I was bleeding out. The last thing I saw was the sky after they knocked me off my feet.” He then pointed to his lower torso. “I’ll spare you the gory imagery but I’m pretty sure they made a buffet out of my stomach.”

“Your stomach?!” Frank repeated in utter disgust.

“I mean, I was dead by then so I can’t be sure, but there’s a nasty gash there, so something gross must have gone down.”

"And when did this happen?!" 

This time it was Mikey who answered. "Thursday, after school, and after we split up to go home. I've locked myself in my room since then. Well, until today. Pete convinced me to come here and visit Ray and Gee. I guess you were too sick to have heard the news."

Frank couldn't help but feel guilty. He's not sure how him being present at the time would've changed anything, but he would've had more of a chance at saving Ray than he ever could in bed, moaning and whining over a pathetic fever.

At least Ray wasn't gone forever. Death was a little easier to deal with after knowing that nobody really has to stay dead if they choose to. It still hurt though.

Frank sulked, picking at the dried grass. "Why Ray?" He pondered

Pete Wentz sighed, rubbing circles into Mikey's back. "The thing about vampires is that… we’re empty." Everyone looked at him, not really understanding what he meant. "Spiritually, I mean. We become demons, so we have no souls—no conscience. Makes us do things that, to anyone else, would seem completely deranged."

"Like murdering your peers in cold blood," Gerard filled in.

Pete nodded. "Sometimes, shit like that is the only thing that makes us… feel again." He looked down at Mikey, who was still nestled into his chest. He smiled slightly, from the corner of his mouth. "But we're not all like that. Some vampires are lucky to have a person that reminds them of what it was like to have a heart."

He looked back up at everyone else. "I don't think it was a coincidence that Ray was killed. Whoever murdered Gerard clearly wasn't happy when you guys tried snooping for answers."

"So by that logic," began Frank. "Either me or Mikey are next."

Gerard gasped in horror. "No! We can't let that happen. We need to stop whoever's doing this in their tracks, before they take either of you!"

Frank ran Gerard's words over and over in his head. Stop them in their tracks…

He suddenly snapped his fingers, giving everyone a slight jolt. "I've got it! You know how we always failed when trying to go after them. So how about instead of searching for them, we bring them to us!" 

Ray quirked an eyebrow. "You mean like bait?"

"Exactly!" Frank said excitedly. He then stood up. "We can use Mikey as bait, and before the vampires attack him, Pete and I ambush them!"

Gerard looked horrified at the mere suggestion. "Over my dead body! There's no way I'm letting you use Mikey as bait, that's way too dangerous!"

"No Gerard, it's a good plan." Mikey sniffled, wiping away the last of his tears. "I wouldn't have a fighting chance against vampires, I'll be more useful as bait. Plus you can't say "over my dead body" if you're already dead," he added with a chuckle. 

Gerard still looked unsure, so Frank placed a hand over his shoulder, hovering it in place—slightly pointless since Gerard had literally zero mass, but a reassuring gesture nonetheless. "Gerard Way, I promise that I won't let anything bad happen to Mikey."

"Me neither!" Pete chimed in. "I would swear on my life, but that'd be meaningless since I'm basically immortal. Oh! I swear on Mikey's life!"

"That doesn't make sense! You can't swear on my life if it's _my life_ you're swearing to protect." Mikey argued.

The five boys then got into a semi-heated argument over the semantics of swears. Well, four of them did. Frank just laughed the whole time, having thoroughly missed being together again, despite the short time he’d gotten to know them.

The atmosphere seemed to settle, and there was a buzz of newfound determination in the air.

“Alright!” Frank announced. “Here is where we’ll enact our plan. Tonight, eleven o’clock, Mikey will stand here while Pete and I hide behind that tree over there. The three of us will fuck those vampires up and save New Jersey!"

Gerard burst out laughing. "Seriously, "save New Jersey"? Thinking a little big, aren't you?"

Frank simmered down, sitting back on the floor. "Heh, okay. We'll save our town—same difference, really. But before then, we HAVE to stick together, or this cemetery's gonna run out of vacancy very soon."

Everybody agreed to that.

Frank didn't know what to feel. He was overwhelmed by everything going on, not to mention how fast it was all happening. So many emotions were overlapping. He was curious about his new vampire identity, hungry from his new desire for blood and scared for the lives of his friends. But he knew he had to put all that aside. Because now, all that mattered to him was uncovering this mystery.

He'll just eat on his way home once all this is over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Four new chapters as an apology for the long break haha. Only a few more chapters left!  
> Please kudos and comment if you enjoy.


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